Status & error messages

Every message the device can show on screen, what it means, and what to do about it.

When something needs your attention, the device shows either a small status box in the corner of the widget grid, or a full-screen notice. This page lists them all. Two useful general rules first:

  • Whenever widgets can't be refreshed, the device keeps showing the last good ones, lightly dithered. Dithering means "this is slightly old", not "this is broken".
  • Almost every condition here is retried automatically on the next wake. A press of the Zerry button forces that retry immediately.

Connection problems

MessageWhat it meansWhat to do
Can't connect to Wi-FiThe device couldn't join your networkCheck the Wi-Fi password, move the device closer to the router, and remember it is 2.4 GHz only
No internet connectionWi-Fi joined, but the internet is unreachable. A small code narrows it down: (net) means nothing beyond the router responds, (dns) means name lookup is failing on your networkCheck whether other devices are online; for (dns), restarting the router usually clears it
Service temporarily unavailableYour internet is fine but the ZerryBit service didn't respond. This genuinely means us, not youWait a little; the device retries on its own
Service Busy / Rate LimitedThe service asked the device to slow down brieflyNothing; it retries automatically
Service ErrorThe service hit an internal error on our sideNothing; it retries automatically
Connection ProblemThe device received a garbled or unexpected response and will retryUsually transient; press the button to retry now

Widget placeholders

A single widget slot can show a small notice while the rest of the screen works normally:

MessageWhat it means
Unavailable, try again soonA temporary hiccup fetching this widget; the next wake usually heals it
No data received for this widgetThe service sent nothing for this slot this time
Couldn't load / render this widgetThe service failed to produce this widget's image
Unsupported widget sizeThis widget can't be rendered at the size it is placed at; try another size in the app
You don't have access to this widgetThe widget isn't included in your plan
Can't reach Home AssistantThe device couldn't fetch this widget from your Home Assistant server; check that the add-on is running and the address is right
Incorrect image sizeYour Home Assistant widget renders a different size than its slot on the device; match the size on the HA side

Full-screen notices

MessageWhat it meansWhat to do
Let's get startedNo widget setup on the device yetOpen the ZerryBit app and add widgets
No widgets configured yetSetup exists but the layout is emptyAdd widgets in the app, then press the button
Battery too lowThe battery is critically empty; the device protects it with a deep sleepCharge it, then press the Zerry button
New firmware available / DownloadingAn update is installingJust wait, a minute or two
Update FailedA firmware download didn't completeNothing; it retries later. After several failures it pauses for 24 h and keeps running normally
Firmware updatedAn update succeeded; the popup lists what's newRead it, press the button, carry on
Config Error / Config WarningA new widget layout couldn't be applied (on a warning, the previous one stays active)Re-save your layout in the app
Device couldn't be authenticated / Device BannedThe service rejected the device's identityContact support; this shouldn't happen to a normal device

Stuck on something not covered here, or a message that won't clear? The always-works escape hatch is the hardware reset: hold the Zerry button about 15 seconds and release. Settings and widgets survive it.

On this page